Hurricane Maria (2017 MG)
Hurricane Maria was a very intense hurricane that caused severe damage throughout the Caribbean, Mexico, and USA. The storm formed very late in the season, and was one of the strongest October hurricanes. Maria caused billions of dollars in damage with flooding, and strong winds. Maria was the first hurricane to reach category 5 status in October since Wilma in 2005. Meteorological History Formation On October 21, a Tropical wave exited the coast of Africa, and was monitored for development. Initially not expected to develop due to moderate to strong shear, the system slowly moved through this region. Despite models forecasting the system to dissipate, it held together, and approached the Leeward Islands. Very late on October 25, a recon plane was sent to investigate the system. Shortly after midnight, they located a closed circulation. And Tropical Depression Thirteen formed on October 26. The system struggled to intensify due to wind shear, but it entered the favorable caribbean, and intensified quickly into a 45 mph Tropical Storm, and was named Maria. Intensification While conditions were favorable in the caribbean, Maria struggled to intensify due to a lack of organization, only strengthening to 60 mph by the time it travelled below Cuba. However, shortly after that time, Maria began to organize significantly, and a very well defined circulation was visible on satellite. On October 29, a recon jet flew into Maria, and found an eye wall, along with winds of 80 mph. Maria was upgraded to a hurricane in the next advisory. Now that Maria was organized, it began to rapidly intensify among low shear, and warm ocean temperatures. Maria became a Major Hurricane on October 31 and made landfall on Cozumel, Mexico. Devastation As Maria moved into the Gulf of Mexico, it was a 145 mph category 4 hurricane. Conditions were favorable for Maria to intensify further. During this time, Maria underwent an eyewall replacement cycle, and began explosive intensification. It went from a 115 mph category 3 hurricane to a 155 mph category 4 hurricane in only 12 hours. A recon jet flew into Maria on November 1, and found winds of 160 mph. Maria was upgraded to a category 5 hurricane - the highest possible rating on the SSHWS. However, shortly after this peak, conditions became more unfavorable, and Maria began to weaken. Maria weakened to 110 mph, and on November 2, Maria made landfall near Cameron, Louisiana as a category 2 hurricane. Despite Maria was weaker, is still had a significant storm surge, causing tons of flooding. The winds also caused severe damage, and 2 people were killed when a traffic signal fell on them. Dissipation Shortly after Maria made landfall, it began a weakening trend. The storm dumped about 6 inches of rain across the middle east. Eventually, on November 5, Maria dissipated near Lake Erie. Impacts Caribbean The Caribbean was only lightly affected, as Maria had a fairly small wind field when it was a Tropical Storm. However, Maria brought about 3 inches of rain to Hispaniola, causing a mudslide that killed 11 people. Maria caused minimal damage there. Mexico Maria caused the most destruction in Mexico when it made landfall on Cozumel, Mexico as a category 3 hurricane with 125 mph winds. The island of Cozumel faced severe damage, along with a majority of the storm's deaths. A mall on Cozumel was destroyed entirely, costing Mexico $2 billion in damage. USA Maria brought massive storm surge to Louisiana, causing massive amounts of damage. The storm surge caused several houses to flood, causing tons of damage to residential neighborhoods. One or two houses were carried out to sea. As stated before, the inward states only got about 6 inches of rain. Retirement Due to its impacts, the name Maria was retired in the spring of 2018. Matilda replaced it in 2023. Category:Tropical Cyclone Article Category:Tropical Cyclone Articles